Tuesday, June 01, 2004

Chess Hall of Fame Live is the official online chess service of the United States Chess Federation and the World Chess Hall of Fame.

US Chess Live software must be downloaded, either as a Windows program or as Java for other platforms.

Of all of the tested chess interfaces, this appears to be the best of the bunch and the one we will probably choose to use, though it is also the only one with no free guest use - you must become a paid registered member. Chess here is played seriously. [Update: actually if you register on the site, you have a free trial period before you have to pay.]

Members of the US Chess Federation - see US Chess Online - obtain reduced rates.

IN rating chess players, the ELO system is used which is described at the USCF site as follows:

"The USCF rating system, developed by statistician Arpad Elo in the early 60s, rates the performance of chessplayers in sanctioned tournaments. Most ratings fall between 400 and 2600, with an average of about 1350. The highest rated active member in the US is Grandmaster Gregory Kaidanov, rated 2743 as of October 2003. In 1970, the World Chess Federation adopted the USCF rating method for international events. In 1993, World Champion Gary Kasparov achieved the highest international rating ever, 2805, breaking Bobby Fischer's 1972 record of 2780. GM Kasparov is now rated 2838, and remains the highest rated chessplayer internationally".

To see the actual rating of the Top Players worldwide, see the World Chess Federation Online, FIDE Online. FIDE is the abbreviation for the World Chess Federation in French, Fédération Internationale des Échecs.